I just got back from the NAPO 2012 National Conference in Baltimore. I learned a lot and saw some great products and services. Here’s my summary of the week.

I’m just getting back from the 2012 National Conference of the National Association of Professional Organizers in Baltimore. Conference this year was really great. In addition to attending workshops on topics like understanding how to help clients with adult ADHD, overcoming procrastination, project management, and more, I spoke two times – once at my Evernote meetup, and again on the topic of keeping mobile workers organized and productive. I also spent time tooling around Baltimore (a great city), devouring burgers and sandwiches all over town. It was a busy week!

Joshua Zerkel at the Neat Company booth

I had a chance to reconnect with my friends from the Neat Company, makers of NeatReceipts and NeatDesk (both of which I have in my office). I’m really excited to share that they are gearing up to launch cloud-enabled versions of their tools. Soon, you’ll be able to access all of your scanned documents from your phone or tablet, and you’ll be able to use your phone’s camera to scan in receipts, business cards, and documents. This is a great development that will allow you much more flexibility with accessing and adding to your personal electronic file cabinet.

Joshua Zerkel at the FileThis Fetch Booth

Another new service being showcased at NAPO 2012 was FileThis Fetch. This is an idea I wish I’d had – instead of you needing to visit every financial institution or credit card company’s website when you have a new statement ready, FileThis Fetch automatically downloads your statements and bills directly to the destination of your choice (Dropbox, your computer, Evernote, etc.) without you having to do anything. It won Best of Show at Macworld in January, and I can see why – this solves a problem that many of my clients have (you want to go paperless, but always forget to go and download your statements). And it’s cheap.

Joshua Zerkel at the Getting Organized Magazine Booth

I also spent some time with Stacey Anderson, publisher of the new Getting Organized magazine. This is the first periodical in some time that focuses exclusively on organization – strategies and solutions as well as products and services. Look for an article from me in the next edition!

And for the organization-obsessed, my friend Clare Kumar recently launched the Pliio. Now available with wide availability from HSN.com, Pliio helps you make the most of your drawer space by letting you “file” your clothes away using a specialized folding and storage method. Pretty!

All in all, I had a great time, learned a TON of strategies that I can use to help you stay organized and productive, met new friends and reconnected with ones I hadn’t seen in awhile. Now I just have to put everything I’ve learned to use!